Despite reports Wednesday that the Phillies are turning their attention to Carlos Quentin in the wake of their lack of progress on the Hunter Pence front, an NL executive who had spoken with both teams said: “I can’t see that working.” Nevertheless, there has been increasing evidence the White Sox are talking to several teams about Quentin, one of which is believed to be Atlanta. “They would move him,” said an executive of one team that has been in touch with the White Sox. “I wouldn’t say they’re bound and determined to move him. But would they? Absolutely.” Another name we were told the White Sox have dangled, just to see what happened: Adam Dunn.

The White Sox do not figure to become outright sellers, not when they’re only 3 1/2 games out of first place in the AL Central. But owner Jerry Reinsdorf wants to trim payroll, according to a major-league source.

So, while the White Sox aren’t about to dust off their dreaded “white flag,” Williams could seek to make deals that lower the payroll while keeping the team competitive for a post-season run.

The Sox went “all-in” this season, increasing their Opening Day payroll to a club-record $127.7 million, the fifth-highest in the majors. However, the team ranks only 19th in home attendance, and their average is down more than 2,000 from a year ago, dropping from 27,091 to 24,647.

“We should just get to the Trade Deadline and where we are, what we do, what we may do, all these questions will be answered,” Williams said. “And let’s go from there. We’ll see how we do this week.”When asked if there were any untouchables on his roster, Williams smiled and reiterated, “Let’s see how we do this week.”

Don’t be surprised as to see the White Sox end up as sellers, says Rosenthal. They’ve got six starters as it is, so Edwin Jackson could be moved without harming the rotation much. Carlos Quentin could be dealt as well, and be replaced by Dayan Viciedo. Controlled through 2012, Quentin would become one of the hottest chips on the market.

Two Braves scouts watched the Sox in Minnesota on June 15-16 and in Colorado on June 29-30, and Phillies representatives have watched the Sox throughout this season, including last week against the Royals. …

Cuban defector signed to $ 10 million contract in 2008. Hitting .322/.364/.528 with 15 homers, 20 walks, 65 strikeouts in 335 at-bats for Triple-A Charlotte. Power to all fields, should produce a solid batting average with plenty of homers despite so-so strike zone judgment. Poor defender at any position and likely a born DH, but he’ll hit. Age 22. Major League ETA: 2011.

Like many Major League clubs, the White Sox seem interested in the Braves’ wealth of young pitching talent. But those fans hoping this means outfielder Carlos Quentin could be headed to Atlanta should be prepared for disappointment.

White Sox advance scout Bill Scherrer was at Turner Field for this past weekend’s series against the Orioles and he stuck around for this week’s series against the Rockies. Given the White Sox and Orioles will not meet again until Aug. 8, Scherrer has likely focused most of his attention toward the Braves’ pitchers.

While the Braves might be in the market for an outfielder, their primary focus will likely not be aimed toward corner outfielders like Quentin. Instead they will continue to evaluate what Jordan Schafer can provide in the leadoff spot and determine whether they need to increase their efforts to find a proven leadoff hitter like the White Sox have in Juan Pierre.

Pierre has batted .261 with a .322 on-base percentage and been successful with just 12 of his 22 stolen base attempts. In other words, he hasn’t been the same guy who was successful with 68 of 86 stolen base attempts last year. But since May 1, he has hit .270 with a .340 on-base percentage and been successful with seven of his 10 stolen base attempts.

Take him. Take him immediately! Of course, we won’t be getting a pitcher in return for Juan Pierre. Much less one with about 1 year of MLB service time and outstanding numbers. A couple slabs of barbeque ribs will be enough for the return.

Pitch classifications provided by the Gameday Algorithm and may be inaccurate.Pitch Type LWTS correspond to how many runs were likely to score on a particular pitch based on average run expectancy when each pitch was thrown and what happened as a result. Negative scores indicate more effective pitches. Time to Plate is the time, in seconds, that it takes an average pitch of this type to reach the plate. This is strongly correlated with velocity, but also factors in movement.

Pitch classifications provided by the Gameday Algorithm and may be inaccurate.Pitch Type LWTS correspond to how many runs were likely to score on a particular pitch based on average run expectancy when each pitch was thrown and what happened as a result. Negative scores indicate more effective pitches. Time to Plate is the time, in seconds, that it takes an average pitch of this type to reach the plate. This is strongly correlated with velocity, but also factors in movement.

Pitch classifications provided by the Gameday Algorithm and may be inaccurate.Pitch Type LWTS correspond to how many runs were likely to score on a particular pitch based on average run expectancy when each pitch was thrown and what happened as a result. Negative scores indicate more effective pitches.Time to Plate is the time, in seconds, that it takes an average pitch of this type to reach the plate. This is strongly correlated with velocity, but also factors in movement.

June 28, 2011

Some players make their name for prodigious power and hit home runs in five consecutive games like Paul Konerko. Other players are known more for their feet and steal bags in four straight like Juan Pierre did earlier this year.

But, among these great luminaries of our time, there is one White Sox player who threatens to be the best ever at what he does: Carlos Quentin. That’s right, in more than 2,200 plate appearances, Quentin is already threatening the top of a certain leaderboard. ….

“Physically I feel good,’’ he said two days after throwing 5 1/3 innings and 104 pitches against the Cubs. “I’m looking forward to Colorado [next start]. “Obviously, I’m not even a year out of surgery yet [July 14], and I’ve always been told that a year out of surgery you should feel close to normal and be gaining strength. I hope I’m going to get stronger, but that stuff is to be determined. Certainly, I hope I can pitch the remainder of the season healthy, or semi-healthy, and help the team win.’’

After breezing through six scoreless innings of a rehab start for Class AAA Charlotte on Thursday night, Jake Peavy appears ready to face the Cubs on Wednesday night at U.S. Cellular Field, pitching coach Don Cooper said Friday.Manager Ozzie Guillen said the six-man starting rotation also appears to be back, probably through the All-Star break.“Without discussing it with Ozzie and [GM] Kenny [ Williams], it looks like he’s lined up for the last game against the Cubs,’’ Cooper said. “That’s unofficial, as well as the six-man rotation. But all of that is going to be discussed and probably shook out after the game today or tomorrow. We’ll talk more about it.”

All White Sox parties agree that Viciedo is a Major Leaguer. The 22-year-old looked prepared offensively in 2010 when he hit .308 over 104 at-bats during his big league callup, but he didn’t really have a definitive defensive position. Now, Viciedo has found a home in the outfield, leaving only a pair of questions to be decided about his future.

How will Viciedo be used with the White Sox? And when will he arrive? During a conversation with MLB.com, general manager Ken Williams seemed strongly inclined to get Viciedo up to the White Sox soon, but definitely not in a reserve capacity.

“It would be awfully interesting to have him in this lineup,” said Williams of the player dubbed “the Cuban Tank.” “He’s ready. He’s obviously got some things he still needs to work on, but I would have no qualms about bringing him here. I’m not going to bring him here to sit. [White Sox manager] Ozzie [Guillen] is not ready to change the mix he has right now, and that has to be respected.”
…
Adam Dunn is locked in for three more years at designated hitter, and Alex Rios is set in the outfield for another three as well. There are those who believe that Viciedo and Carlos Quentin will become an either/or outfield proposition. Williams is not one of those people.

“That’s going to be the trio of Chicago,” said Viciedo of an outfield including himself, Quentin and Rios, with Quentin potentially moving back to left.

“There are some pretty good hitters in the lineup just mentioned,” Williams said. “Someone else will have to figure out the leadoff spot, if that were something to think about.”

Pitch classifications provided by the Gameday Algorithm and may be inaccurate. Pitch Type LWTS correspond to how many runs were likely to score on a particular pitch based on average run expectancy when each pitch was thrown and what happened as a result. Negative scores indicate more effective pitches.

Time to Plate is the time, in seconds, that it takes an average pitch of this type to reach the plate. This is strongly correlated with velocity, but also factors in movement.